I’m thinking this happens a couple of hundred times a day… if not more.

Is your phone a constant distraction?

Does it interfere with daily activities like sleeping?

Do you fly into a panic when you realize that it’s not in your pocket, or your handbag?

Have you ever nearly walked into someone, or better yet, a wall or street post, because of how engaged you are with your phone? *Whispers* is it close to you right now?

Well, these are all tell-tale signs of the onset of smart phone addiction.

I know, because I have been through all these phases.

Cutting off supply of the internet to my phone has actually worked wonders for me in a short time.

Because my phone no longer distracts me, I can read more books, I get a lot more work done, and I SLEEP more!

Up until last month, my phone would keep me up till 12 AM, reading random articles, trying to beat my high score in a game, or catching that last chat opportunity with a friend, knowing that I have to wake up every day at 5 AM.

It was brutal!

I actually have a lot more freedom, because when I turn off internet access from my laptop, my phone no longer whispers seductively to me, knowing I have to catch some beauty sleep.

We do not have to dedicate so much time to our phones.

There is so much more we can do with our time! If you feel the same way, if you are ready to no longer be a prisoner of your phone, and get your life back, then let’s talk about how to kick your smartphone addiction.

Visual.ly has provided a really insightful infographic of smartphone addiction and also, how to detox yourself from it!

You allow your phone to run your life, the same way I allowed it to mess with my sleeping patterns.

These days, I feel really good about the fact that when it is time to sleep, I actually sleep, and it has made me a lot less grumpy in the mornings.

This change had to happen because I took a critical look at how much my phone was occupying a lot of time that I could be using to work on other things, like this website, or planning my day and other projects.

I just made a decision that building a legacy is much more important than occupying my time with silly politics or entertainment.

What really matters to you that your phone is interfering it? Find a way to make those things a much bigger priority than playing Candy Crush! Stop making your phone a prisoner of your every move.

2. Be Aware Of Your Urges At All Times And Set Boundaries!

We all have our times and moods when we use our phones.

Many times we put ourselves in danger, texting on the road or losing concentration to feel for it while driving.

Know your boundaries.

Is it really that important to reply to a text message while driving on the highway?

Is it worth risking your life to frantically search for the ringing phone while your about to overtake a car?

There have been numerous accidents that have been caused because of using our phones at the wrong time.

I made my life a lot easier by setting up a radio with bluetooth in my car, which has made driving so much more of a pleasure for me.

My mind can be thinking about one less thing, thank God. Know how much of a time waster or a dangerous device your phone can be to you, and make a plan to mitigate these risks.

3. Control Your Environment!

If you read my articles, you will know that your environment is a catalyst that can cause you to act on your urges.

So if you must, keep your phone away from you physically instead of looking at it every 5 minutes. I doubt TMZ updates its gossip pages every 5 minutes.

Discipline yourself to look at your phone less by finding other activities.

Put a book next to your nightstand instead of your phone, if you can, take a nice, long walk without your phone.

Do whatever you can to make the environment work for you, so that you are not constantly tempted to stare at your phone.

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